Quiz: The Origins of TV Shows and Movies Quiz: HowStuffWorks

The Origins of TV Shows and Movies Quiz

By: Staff

4 Min Quiz

Image: refer to hsw

About This Quiz

The book is always better than the movie. The original is always better than the sequel. British is better than American. Not so fast — not all of those assumptions are correct. But, then, not all our ideas are new ...

Unlike its popular American predecessor, "The Golden Girls," this British sitcom only aired 11 episodes before it went to live at Shady Pines.

"The Brighton Girls"

"The Brighton Belles"

"The Upper Hand"

"The Brighton Belles" was the U.K. adaptation of America's "The Golden Girls" that aired 11 episodes between 1993 and 1994.

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The American TV series "Homeland" is based on a series from which country?

Australia

Israel

Netherlands

"Homeland" is based on Israel's "Prisoners of War."

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What J.R.R. Tolkien work inspired Led Zeppelin's "Ramble On," off the "Led Zeppelin II" album?

"The Lord of the Rings"

"The Silmarillion"

"The Hobbit"

Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" inspired "Ramble On." The lyrics mention Mordor ("T'was in the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair") and Gollum ("But Gollum, and the evil one crept up and slipped away with her").

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What action-thriller starring Bruce Willis is based on Roderick Thorp's book "Nothing Lasts Forever"?

"Die Hard"

"The Jackal"

"The Whole Nine Yards"

"Die Hard" is a film adaptation of "Nothing Lasts Forever," a sequel to Thorp's book "The Detective," which also had a film adaptation that starred Frank Sinatra. Yippee-ki-yay!

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The American '70s sitcom "Sanford and Son" was based on which popular British sitcom?

"All Gas and Gaiters"

"Father, Dear Father"

"Steptoe and Son"

"Steptoe and Son" ran on BBC from 1962 to 1965 and returned (in color) in 1970 for four more seasons. It inspired the American sitcom "Sanford and Son," which ran from 1972 to 1977. But "Steptoe" itself was inspired by a play, "The Offer." You hear that, Elizabeth?

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The original "Iron Chef" was hosted by Chairman Kaga in what country?

Japan

Laos

Singapore

The original Kitchen Stadium, with matches hosted by Chairman Kaga, is located in Japan.

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Which book is NOT inspired by Homer's epic story of Odysseus, "The Odyssey"?

"Ransom" by David Malouf

"The Grapes of Wrath" by John Steinbeck

"The Penelopiad" by Margaret Atwood

"Ulysses" by James Joyce

"The Grapes of Wrath," by John Steinbeck, was not inspired by Homer's poem. As a side note: Bruce Springsteen's song, "The Ghost of Tom Joad" is based on a film adaptation of "The Grapes of Wrath." And U2's song "Breathe" is based on Joyce's "Ulysses."

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Which series inspired Norman Lear's "All in the Family"?

"Justice for All"

"The Honeymooners"

"Till Death Us Do Part"

The British show named "Till Death Us Do Part" inspired "All in the Family" after Norman Lear read about the show's success.

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Which of the following was an "All in the Family" spinoff?

"Alice"

"Maude"

"Welcome Back, Kotter"

Maude, Edith Bunker's cousin, only appeared in two episodes, but the spinoff debuted in 1972.

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The U.S. sitcom "Maude" was known as "Maguy" when it was adapted in which country?

Belgium

France

Sweden

The French adaptation of "Maude," called "Maguy," ran from 1985 to 1994.

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Oprah Winfrey and Danny Glover star in this movie, based on the Toni Morrison novel of the same name.

Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" was based on the novel "The Short-Timers" by Gustav Hasford (the real-life Joker), who served as a correspondent with the 1st Marine Division in Vietnam. The screenplay was co-written by Kubrick and Michael Herr.

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Which Coen brothers movie gets its name from the 1941 Preston Sturges Hollywood comedy "Sullivan's Travels"?

"Burn After Reading"

"Hail, Caesar!"

"O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

In "Sullivan's Travels," Hollywood director John L. Sullivan, played by Joel McCrea, decides to make a movie called "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

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True or false: Madame Bovary could be read as a female Don Quixote.

true

false

Although he lost his mind reading novels of chivalry and she lost hers reading romance novels, Madame Bovary is a female incarnation of Don Quixote.

Martin Scorsese's "The Departed" is a remake of which Chinese film?

Released in 2006, "The Departed" is Scorsese's remake of the 2002 film "Infernal Affairs."

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Bonnie Raitt's 1991 hit "I Can't Make You Love Me" was inspired by a man who shot at his girlfriend's car but was written by which former NFL lineman?

Daryn Colledge

Frank Gore

Mike Reid

Mike Reid, former NFL lineman and No. 7 draft pick of 1970, is also a pianist and Grammy-winning composer. He also wrote Ronnie Milsap's "Stranger in My House."

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Which is NOT a spinoff of "Happy Days"?

"Laverne & Shirley"

"Mork & Mindy"

"The Facts of Life"

"The Facts of Life" was not a spinoff of "Happy Days." It was a spinoff of "Diff'rent Strokes."

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"Happy Days" is a spinoff of what American comedy series?

"Love, American Style"

"The Rockford Files"

"Wait Till Your Father Gets Home"

"Happy Days" is a spinoff of an episode called "Love and the Happy Days" from the comedy series "Love, American Style."

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Which "Breaking Bad" character got his own spinoff?

Gus Fring

Jesse Pinkman

Saul Goodman

Starring Saul Goodman before he was Walter White's attorney, "Better Call Saul" is a spinoff and prequel to "Breaking Bad."

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"The Amityville Horror" is based on a book by the same name about a house at what address?

42 Wallaby Way

112 Ocean Ave.

124 Bluestone Road

The terrorized newlyweds live at 112 Ocean Avenue.

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Which John Updike novel is a prequel to William Shakespeare's "Hamlet"?

"Gertrude and Claudius"

"The Centaur"

"Toward the End of Time"

The novel "Gertrude and Claudius" is written as a prequel to Shakespeare's "Hamlet" and ends around act one, scene two of the original work.

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True or false: Quentin Tarantino's debut film, "Reservoir Dogs," has been accused of ripping off Ringo Lam's "City on Fire."

true

false

Professional and armchair critics alike have compared "Reservoir Dogs" to Ringo Lam's 1987 film "City on Fire."

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Which version of "The Ring" grossed more in Japanese theaters, the Japanese original directed by Hideo Nakata or the U.S. remake directed by Gore Verbinski?

"Ringu" (Japan)

"The Ring" (U.S.)

Gore Verbinski's 2002 version of "The Ring," starring Naomi Watts, grossed more in Japan than Nakata's original from 1998. "Ringu," however, wasn't the story's origin; that was the novel "Ring" by Koji Suzuki. But it doesn't end there — Suzuki draws from "Bancho Sarayashiki," a Japanese folktale.

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Alfred Hitchcock bought the film rights to Robert Bloch's horror novel "Psycho" in 1959 for how much money?

$3,500

$5,000

$9,500

Hitchcock purchased the film rights to the novel "Psycho" for $9,500, plus the amount it cost him to buy all the available copies of the book to keep the suspense alive for his movie watchers.

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Which song, based on a physical attack of CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather, did R.E.M. release in 1993?

"Bang and Blame"

"Strange Currencies"

"What's The Frequency, Kenneth?"

R.E.M.'s "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" gets its name from an attack on journalist Dan Rather by two assailants who repeated "Kenneth, what's the frequency?"

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Which John Sturges-directed Western is a remake of Akira Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai"?

"Bad Day at Black Rock"

"The Great Escape"

"The Magnificent Seven"

Antoine Fuqua's 2016 remake of "The Magnificent Seven" is actually a remake of a remake; Sturges' 1960 film is a remake of Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai" — the original original.

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True or false: Sergio Leone's "A Fistful of Dollars" is a remake of Akira Kurosawa's "Yojimbo."

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